To start over
by Potterhead896
Summary: He saved the soul stone for last. Even after returning to his old life, Steve needed time and a little push from someone special to realise what he had to do. Sequel to "At the end, it was always you" but it can be read as independant. Steve/Natasha. Romanogers! UPDATED
1. Vormir (06-16 23:15:45)

He saved the soul stone for last.

He landed on Vormir and took a moment to appreciate the view and take a look at his surroundings. Steve would have thought the planet was beautiful, with and orange sun and the purple sky, if not for the cold and scary aura he could feel in the air. There was no sign of life at any sight and the gigantic mountain about a mile away from him radiated death_._He had tried to delay coming to Vormir as much as he could, but he knew he would eventually have to come. This was were _she _died. Where she sacrificed herself. Steve had thought when he took the mission that he could use this chance to say goodbye to Nat, but he didn't have the courage to come sooner. How was he suppossed to say goodbye to her? To the one person that had been by his side for almost since he'd been out of the ice? He tried to take comfort in the fact that she'd saved them all, that they'd won, that her sacrifice hadn't been in vain. He repeated those empty words over and over again in his head, hoping that they would eventually ease the crashing pain in his chest every time he thought about her.

She was his family, he would have gladly die for her if he'd been given the chance. But he didn't, and she was dead.

He stood there, staring at the mountain for a while, holding the sould stone firmly in his hand. Then he started walking towards it.

He gave one step. The thought of Nat falling from that cliff made him look away from the mountain and to his feet.

Another step. He realised he would have to see her lifeless body. His vission blurred.

Another step. Images of her laying over a puddle of blood filled his mind. His chest tightened.

Another step. His mind made up the sound of her bones crashing against the hard, cold stone. He could feel his heart poundind painfully in his chest.

Another step. He could see her red hair stained with blood, and her eyes, her beautiful green eyes, just empty.

He stopped. His hands were shaking, he was sweating and he couldn't catch his breath. A panick attack.

He fell to one knee as he tried desperately to get air into his lungs, but it felt like knives were ripping down his throat and his chest was on fire. Even after all this years, Steve had never felt anything like this. It was silly to believe that he was strong enough to take this, it was just too much. He looked at the soul stone as it glowed a bright orange in his palm. That's when he realised he wasn't ready.

"I..I can't" He said, "Not yet"

He tightened his grasp on the stone, and set the coordinates for another time jump. With one last look at the mountain, he left Vormir.

**Author's note: **Hi! This is the first part of my take on what happened when Steve returned to the past. It was not really established that he married Peggy, so this is sort of a canon compliant fix-it attempt. Also this story is the continuation of my other fic "At the end, it was always you" so if you're interested go read it! I really appreciate comments so don't hesitate to write anything!


	2. The calm before the storm

_**NOTE: **Hi! Just to clarify, I know this chapter is mainly Steve/Peggy but don't worry it's just necessary to connect the story. This is a Romanogers fic, there is plenty of it yet to come._

Steve didn't realise how long he had been standing outside of her house until he felt his legs completely sore. He'd been watching her through the window, as she sat on the kitchen's table, reading the newspaper while drinking a cup of coffee and listening to an old radio. Except that it wasn't old in this time, it was 1946 after all. And he was watching Peggy Carter just as he'd last seen her before going in the ice.

Going back to 1946 had been his plan all along, the final destination after the mission was complete. But, after the breakdown he suffered in Vormir, he thought he could go earlier and take some time to gather the courage to give it another try.

He felt ridiculous. Here he was, finally back after over 10 years, Peggy was a few meters away and he didn't have the guts to approach. What was he suppossed to say? How would he explain it? How will she take it? Those and a million more questions were running around in his head, but after a while he finally decided to figure it out along the way. So he knocked the door.

Peggy opened the door and when she laid eyes on him her jaw dropped. For a couple second she would just stare at him amazed, while he would just smile. Then tears started to form in her eyes.

"Steve?" She asked softly.

"Hi Peggy" He answered. She stepped forward and embraced him in a tight hug, letting the tears out on his shoulder. "I thought you dead."

He embraded her tighter, trying to fight his own emotions. "I know." He answered, "We certainly have a lot to catch up." He separated from her just enough to look her in the eyes. "But first, I think I owe you a dance."

Peggy smiled fondly and nodded. Inside the house, they moved all the furniture aside and turned up the volume of the radio, then, he offered his hand to her, which she took. With one hand holding hers and the other on her back, holding her close, they moved through the living room swaying to the rythm. After dancing a couple songs, they stared into each other's eyes, and without a word needed, they leaned in and share their second kiss, with no war around to stop them this time.

This was it, the beggining of his new life. This was his future. This was home. This is what he had wanted for so long. Here, he could finally be in peace, free of the pain.

Or so he thought.

That peace lasted about three days. Then the dreams started.


	3. Struggling

After the dance, Steve sat with Peggy and answered all of her questions. He told her everything, trying to explain things like time travel laws and infinity stones with cosmic power the best he could. She just listened to him patiently, half in awe half in disbelieve. There were a couple times Steve actually feared that she thought he had gone mad, that some side effect of being frozen had messed with his mind, but then he would see a tiny spark in her eyes every now and then, as he talked about things thought impossible in this time.

He filled her in with the most part of his long journey over the 21st century, but for some reason, he kept from talking much about the Avengers. His friends, his family. He couldn't help but remembering the lost heroes every time he thought of his team, and the pain was unbearable, so he just chose to push it aside.

"I can't even picture in my mind half of the things you just described." Peggy said, "must have been quite a journey."

"Yes, it has." Steve answered with a sad smile.

"You must have felt so lost in such a different world, so lonely..." Peggy pulled him to a hug. "But you're home now." She said in his shoulder.

That night, when Peggy lead him to the guest room (Because of course, it was 1946 and they were not married) Steve sat on the bed, with the soul stone in his hand, and stared at it for a long time. The more he contemplated it's orange glow, the angrier he got. He hated that stone the most, he wanted to crash it into a million tiny pieces and see that glow fade away forever. Because it had killed Natasha. But a part of him kept him from doing so, for it was his way to hold on to her.

It was sick and twisted that the only thing left he had from her was the the stone she'd died for, and it made him angry. So he put the stone in a little wood box and under the bed, to stay there until he decided it was time to go to Vormir again. But for now...for now he just needed to rest.

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The next couple days went on a little rocky. Despite this being his own time, he had grown used to modern technology for even the most simple things, like making coffee or watching the news. The lack of google or a decent tv screen was something he never thought he would miss this much, but again, it was a side effect of spending over a decade relying on Stark tech.

But that was not the main problem.

Peggy and him decided that it would be better if he stayed hidden from the public eye for now, until they could come up with a way to explain to anyone how Captain America got back from the dead. So as she went to work with the S.S.R, Steve had some time alone. The problem was, the more he was left alone with his thoughts... the more he questioned his decition of coming back.

Peggy was amazing, he was so glad to be reunited with her, and he was aware of how lucky he was to get a secong chance. But, it hurted to admit that he still wasn't happy. So days went on, and even when he tried his best to seem fine, there were a couple times he was sure she had noticed, he could see her face fall.

One time, she brought the photos they took at camp when the war ended, thinking that might cheer him up, so they sat on the couch to look at them together. Everything was fine until Steve came across one picture that showed Peggy, Howard and the Howling Commandos all together, smiling in black and white, congratulating each other for the battle they'd just won. He stared at it for a couple seconds.

"I love that one." She said, looking at the photo in his hand, "I know you were missing there, but even so we were quite a team." She smiled, but steve couldn't. This was Peggy's family, and until Steve went in the ice, it used to be his too. But now, seeing this picture, he could only think about his real team, his real family.

The Howling Commandos had fought by his side for months, the Avengers had been his life for over a decade. With it's ups and downs, the laughing and the fighting, even with the animosity built in the last years with Tony... he trusted them, respected them, and loved them all.

And even so, he left. He chose his 1945 life over staying in a reality were his family wasn't complete, but it was still ripping his heart.

Peggy softly touched his arm, and he came out of his trance. He looked at her concerned face and quickly cracked a fake smile, the last thing he wanted was to make her sad. If she had something to say she chose to keep it, and they continued like nothing had happened.

That was just one example of all the silent break-downs he was having.

He tried, he really tried to feel at home, but every time more often, in the tiniest details it was clear that he wasn't were he was supposed to be...or who he was supposed to be with. His mind played painful tricks on him. About _her, _it was always about her.

Some days, when he was making a sandwich or anyother thing to have for breakfast after Peggy went to work, if he got distracted, he would make two sandwiches. And it took him a moment to realise that he had unintentionally made Natasha something to eat. Out of his past routine. But the seat next to him would remain empty, and the food untouched. That emptiness felt crashing heavy on him, and the dead silence was torture.

Then, when he was reading the news and talking to Peggy at the same time, she made a joke about him being over a hundred years old so they could earn some money selling him to the museum.

"Hilarious, Romanoff." He said, without even raising his eyes from his newspaper, until the realisation hit him, with which his expression shifted to pure sorrow. Peggy heard, he knew she did, but she didn't comment anything about it, and he was grateful for that.

He hadn't cried since they mourned Nat, and it was starting to make him worried. It wasn't because it didn't hurt, because _hell, it hurted. _But tears just wouldn't leave his eyes. In the worst meltdowns, like the one on Vormir, his chest would tighten, he would feel his lungs on fire and that he could pass out anytime...but not a single tear though.

This went on for days. He would silently struggle with this haunting feelings, trying to keep Peggy from knowing how much he was really hurting. And just when he thought he was gaining control, the haunting memories turned into dreams.

_About her,_

_it was always about her._

_**Note: Hi !!! I hope you're liking it so far, I'm sorry about the long time for the update, i've been very vety busy, but there are more chapter coming! If you have any suggestion please let me know in the comments! :)**_


	4. The first one

_He woke up to find her thin figure lying next to him on the bed. He was facing her back, with her short blond hair spilled all over the pillow. He reached forward and gently tapped her shoulder._

_Natasha opened her eyes and rolled over her back and to her other side so now she was facing Steve._

_"Morning, soldier." She said, still sleepy._

_"Hey, Nat" He said, confused, and stared at her._

_"What?" She asked._

_"Care to explain what are you doing in my bed?"_

_"I had forgotten how cold the nights in Russia were, and you happen to be a really effective heat source." She answered and smiled teasingly._

_"So are you planning on slipping in every night or.."_

_"Calm down Rogers, I'm not gonna rape you."_

_He could feel his cheeks turning a deep shade of red. She saw this and laughed lightly, digging her face in the pillow.__Steve smiled too. He looked at her, her messy hair, purple bags under her tired eyes, a couple recent scars on her temple, and thought that she still looked beautiful._

_"You and your old man manners are laughable." She said "So, am I allowed to use your bed or not?"_

_"Well, I'm not going to be responsible for you freezing to death." He answered, cracking a smile._

She rolled her eyes. _"Always the hero. But seriously Rogers how come you are so scared of having a girl in your bed, jeez."_

_"That's hilarious Romanoff. Why don't you go back to sleep?"_

_"Fine" She gave him a last smiled and rolled over again to have her back to him, "Don't worry I'll keep my hands to myself if it makes you feel better._"

_"You mentally exhaust me, Nat"_

_She laughed again. "Sweet dreams, Rogers"_

And then he woke up. It took him a moment to settle back in reality: that he was in 1945, in Peggy's guest room,..and that Natasha was dead.

He remembered that night. It was not a dream, it was a memory. It was during the time they were on the run, hidding in Russia from Ross and the US government. It was the first time they had shared a bed, and it would be the first of many.

It had felt so real. So real.

It hadn't been like watching it from afar, it had been like living it again. Every minor detail, exactly the way it had been.

He sat on the bed and absently ran his hand through the sheets. The night after the one in his dream, she would pull the sheets a little more to her side; the night after that, she would dare to take the biggest pillow; a couple nights after, she would sleep with her back pressed to Steve while he had an arm around her waist, pulling her closer, taking in the smell of her hair. And it ended up being the way they would sleep form then on.

Now, the other side of the bed was empty.

It would be an understatement to say that the dream left Steve a little shaken, his mind was running at lightspeed and his heart pounding rapidly too. He considered going back to sleep, but he was already fully awake, so he chose to go get some tea instead.

As he walked to the kitchen he thought that the next day he could have a good dreamless night sleep.

That of course didn't happen.


	5. The nights that followed

After a week, he started to develop large dark circles under his eyes. Not due to the lack of sleep, because he slept for hours and hours, but the lack of rest. Every morning he woke up with the feeling that he hadn't been asleep at all. Every night the dreams felt more real.

Some days he couldn't tell what was the dream and what was real anymore. Maybe this 1946 reality was the fake, and he would soon wake up to find her making breakfast in the Avengers compound. But it wasn't like that.

Eventually, he would remember the truth. And that's what made it so painful.

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_He walked past the entrance of the Avengers compound, trying to dismiss the annoying headache he'd had the whole day, and set the bags of chinesse food he'd bought earlier on the kitchen table. He looked around and shook his head lightly at the sight of a half-eaten sandwich lying next to the sink._

_She wasn't in her usual spot on the computer, nor in the gym area. He even went to check in her room, to see if maybe the need to rest had finally made her go to sleep for a couple hours, but she wasn't there either. Steve checked all the places he knew she frequented in the facility, but he couldn't find her anywhere. Then, he heard the music playing._

_He approached silently to the large dance hall._

_He never understood why Tony insisted that they needed one, it probably had to do with teasing him when he said that he didn't know how to dance. 'Oh no way Rogers, you're not going to embarass me in one of our after-battle parties. So we'll have to teach your ass how to move on the dance floor.' Tony had said just to annoy Steve, but he couldn't help to feel a deep apreciattion for his friend._

_The room had mirrors all over the walls, all the way from the floor to the ceiling, and a few bars. As he came closer, the soft melodies of piano and violin became louder, and what he saw took his breath away._

_Nat was dancing ballet._

_She was in a black body, black tights and a simple black skirt, and she had pointe shoes on. She gracefully moved through the floor, walking and turning on her toes like if she was weightless. Her loose red hair followed her movements like a fire track, and her skirt embraced her figure softly every time she turned._

_Steve had never seen a ballet performance, but it was clear that Natasha was pretty good at it. Her performance was graceful and elegant, but what Steve liked the most about it was that she had her eyes closed, and a shy smile across her lips. For merely a second, he could see her truly, peacefully, genuinely happy._

_When the music stopped, he clapped and she turned around realise he was there.__"Did I took you by surprise? You're not keeping those reflexes sharp, Nat." He said cockily._

_"So funny." She answered, "So what do I owe the pleasure of your visit? You ran out of food in the fridge?"_

_"Actually, I stopped by to make sure you were having more than a peanut butter sandwich to survive throughout the day. So I brought chinesse takeout."_

_"In my defense it's not always peanut butter, this morning I had jam." She answered sadly, "Thanks for worrying though."_ _She took her water bottle to have a drink. "So how are your therapy sessions?"_

_"Good, I almost have a dozen people now. And they're starting to feel comfortable enough to share more stories." He answered. "And how's work, director Romanoff?"__ She rolled her eyes at the name._

_"Stressful as always. Carol says she is busy helping planets on the other side of the universe, Rocket and Nebula are somewhere in outter space doing the same, and Rhodey and Okoye are doing what they can to help here. And I... well I'm just trying not to lose my mind."_

_"You are doing everything you can too" He said, "You control every movement, every operation, every mission. But..." He stopped for a moment to consider his words, "but it's an invisible enemy we are battling here." She looked at him, and he could see in her eyes just how tired she was._

_He gestured at her outfit and smiled, trying to lift her spirit. "So this is what you're doing now to release some stress?" She smiled back, and looked at her pointe shoes.__"Yeah, I guess. I always loved ballet, when I'm dancing it's like nothing else exists." She looked back at him, "I could really use a partner, you know."_

_Steve raised an eyebrow, quite shocked.__"You think you're up to the mission Rogers?" She asked with a grin._

_"You can't be serious"_

_"Come on, it's not that hard." She took his hand and dragged him to the center. "You're just going to be balance support."_ _She explained to him a few ballet partnering steps and then played the music again._

_He wasn't kidding when he admitted he knew nothing about dancing, and ballet was the hardest and most complicated dance style. But he would do his best to keep that smile on her face._

_Steve followed her lead in some basic steps and then, with his hands holding firmly to her waist, he helped her spin, nailing 10 pirouettes. With his help, she could do attitudes, arabesques and penchés. After a while, Steve felt he was starting to get it so he relaxed a little. He was surprisingly enjoying it.__"Looks like you're a natural." Nat said, smiling warmly at him._

_As the song was coming to the end and Steve was gaining more confidence, they really went for it and tried to do a lift. Nat took a few steps away to gain momentum and with a leap, Steve carried her full weight and lifted her over his head in a nice pose. Everything was going perfect until one of her legs slipped from his hands. Foreseing the outcome, Steve catched her instinctively and covered her with his body, which made both of them lose balance and end up rolling to the floor._

_They stayed laying there for a few seconds, with unrestrained laughter._

_Seeing her like this, laughing and smiling, her green eyes glowing, made his heart melt. He knew that later they'd both have to go back to their harsh reality, but for now, even if it was just for a brief moment, they could forget about everything else and enjoy each other's company._

_Once she could control her laughter, she looked at him smiling. "Thank you for this, Steve."_

_She raised to her feet and offered him a hand. He took it and she helped him stand up. "I'm glad you had fun, cause I'm not going to feel my back tomorrow."_

_She grinned. "Let's go eat that chinesse you brought, I'm starving." _

Nat walking out the door of the dance room was the last he remembered before opening his eyes, once more, to a cold empty bed.


	6. Mission is not over yet

**Note:** I still have an idea for the next chapter, but I'm open to suggestions for the finale!!

Thank you so much kelseyannemclaughlin for encouraging me to continue writing this fic. This is for you! ;)

It had been a month, and it hadn't stop.

Even Peggy had started to notice long ago now. How could she not? Every morning he looked worse than the day before. The restless nights were physically and _emotionally_ exhausting. He would find himself covered in cold sweat, his heart pounding rapidly, completely shaken by what he had been dreaming.

_About her. __It was always about her._

He dreamt about their time together, the good and the bad moments alike. From their movie nights at the compound, sitting on the couch with a blanket and her feet resting on his lap; to their hardest missions, both covered in multiple wounds and unknown blood, patching each other up.

Every time he woke up, the last thing he remembered was her. A moment frost in time of her face, her wavy red hair, her glowing emerald eyes, her dazzling smile. Always smiling; sometimes peaceful, sometimes teasingly, sometimes sadly; always beautiful. A heartwarming sight that was violently destroyed when he opened his eyes, only to come back to a harsh reality. One in which he was not to see that smile ever again.

Steve could see Peggy growing worried as the time passed, not knowing how to approach the matter, unsure about how to help him. So she'd granted him space, after he clarified his recurring dreams were an issue he wasn't eager to talk about.

It became sort of a painful, exhausting, never-ending routine for Steve. He didn't know if it was something entirely made up by his mind, or if the soul stone had something to do with it. Maybe this was the universe punishing him for messing with the timeline. Anyways, he felt his mind trapped between his past and the present and his heart equally divided.

Very within him, there was the dark feeling rising that he would have to make a choice. He just kept delaying it. Until he couldn't anymore.

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_He was standing outside of the compound, staring at the lake. It seemed just like any other dream he was so used to by now. But this was different.__This was not a memory. His mind was clear, he knew he was asleep. And he remembered everything._

_He turned around, confused, when he felt a hand on his shoulder.__"Hey soldier, sorry for being late." Natasha said. "I know I said 'see you in a minute' but... there were some minor complications." she smiled._

_Steve stood there, gazing at her for almost a full minute. He was afraid that if he even blinked she would fade away. Wearing her Black Widow gear, with her red hair braided to the side, she held his gaze, still smiling softly. Steve slowly came back to his senses and raised hi hands to touch her cheek._

_"Nat..." he said, almost in a whisper, for he couldn't understand what was happening. Maybe she wasn't real, maybe she wasn't really there, but in that moment that's how it felt, and he would take it as a blessing._

_He hugged her, his arms embraced her firmly, pulling her closer, as he closed his eyes and buried his head on her shoulder.__This was what he was craving for. Seeing her again, being able to do and say what he didn't when he had the chance._

_"I miss you, Nat." He said._

_"Then why did you leave?"_

_With that question, every warmth in Steve disappeared, instantly replaced by a sting in his heart._

_Suddenly, the floor under their feet was gone, and the light of day faded away. They fell into the black, cold emptiness._ _He instinctively reached out for Natasha, and managed to get a grip of her wrist. Then, he felt his body hit the hard stone of a cliff, but Natasha was still hanging over the edge._

_He looked down at her. She turned to look at the darkness of the bottom, and then back at him._

_"Let me go." She said calmly._

_"No" He answered firmly._

_The freezing air made his body shiver, her weight dislocated his shoulder, every single muscle ached, but he wouldn't let go. Not again._

_"It's okay."_

_The clouds in the sky made a circle over their heads, and he could hear the lightnings like a loud roar. He knew they were on Vormir, but he could have described that placed as hell itself. __Not even his full strenght was enough though, and with horror he felt her hand slip from his._

_"Nat!" He screamed desperately, and without thinking it twice, he launched after her._

_Steve felt the world started moving in slow motion. He was falling, reaching out to Natasha a few feet away from him, and under them, the emptiness turned into deathly hard stone, glowing orange. _

When her body hit the bottom, he woke up.

He was awaken by the pain of hitting the floor after falling out of bed, sweaty, sore and quivering. Unsteady, he searched for the box under the bed, and took the soul stone out. It was boiling hot, vibrating furiously, glowing orange, but Steve held it tightly, dismissing the pain. Finally, large tears fell freely down his face, letting out terrible, heartbreaking sobs expressing all the pain and frustration that were consuming him.

The door creaked, opening slightly, and he saw Peggy looking at him with concern and sadness. She entered the room and sat next to him.

"I left." He said, holding back a sob. "She never left my side in over ten years and I couldn't even stay long enough to bury her properly." He couldn't raise his eyes to meet Peggy's. He was ashamed, he felt guilty, and he was heartbroken. Peggy placed her hand on top of his lovingly, encouraging him to continue.

"She was there when I lost you, she was there when Bucky went back into cryo, she was there when the whole world was hunting me down." He said, more to himself than to her, "Even when I had nothing, I had Natasha. And when half of the universe vanished, I felt guilty, because a part of me was relieved that she was still there. The world was falling to pieces, and for one second the only thing I cared about was that she was still alive. So when we all came back from the mission and Nat didn't..." his voice cracked.

"You loved her." She said, smiling slightly.

"No, Peggy, I..."

"Oh Steve." She interrupted, touching his cheek. "All this time, and you still don't know a bloody thing about women." She spoke softly, smiling sadly, but without a hint of resentment in her voice.

"She was a pain in my ass." He chuckled, "At the very beggining I couldn't even trust her. But somewhere along the way she became my partner."

"You said it was hard to find someone with shared life experience. I was not the one by your side through all what you've been through, she was. Natasha."

"It was never a good time for us." Steve said sadly, "There was always something more important that needed our attention." It was painful to wonder what could have been if they's aknowledged what they both knew was there. What everyone knew _was there_. "One of the last things I said to her was 'I think we both need to get a life'." His face fell, "How was I supposed to live in a reality where she was gone?."

That, he meant. The thought of going back to 2023 wad almost as unbeareable as it had been going to Vormir.

A world broken by the snap, about to start a long process to recovery. A world without Black Widow, his partner; without Iron Man. He didn't have the courage to look at Pepper or Morgan in the eyes, he couldn't shake away the memory of the team taking the stones from Tony's corpse.

"What happened to her?" Peggy asked.

Steve opened his hand to show her the soul stone. "She sacrificed to get the last stone. The soul stone required an exchange, a soul for a soul." He said angrily, pressing the stone firmly in his hands, with enough strengh to make his fingers hurt. "I was her partner, and I didn't go with her. I let her go with someone else."

"It was not your fault"

"I know." He answered. "But I would have died for her. For anyone on my team."

"That's what you do for family, Steve." Peggy kept caressing his hand as she thought what to say next. Then, an idea hit her.

"I thought you said you returned the stones." She said, "that it was your mission, why you traveled back in time."

"I returned every one but this." He answered, "I went to Vormir but...it was too much." Peggy stared at him with wide opened eyes.

"Didn't you say it was an exchange? A soul for a soul." She asked excitedly. Steve was confused.

"It's an everlasting exchange, it can't be undone." He answered, realising what her point was.

"Steve, you have told me about time travelling, alien races, cosmic power. Things I couldn't even dream of, that for me were impossible. Even if there is the tiniest spark of hope, the slightiest chance that you can bring her back, you need to go for it." She was looking intensely into his eyes, and he could see that she meant it. "And if it's true that it can't be undone...you still need closure, a chance to say goodbye. Otherwise you'll be haunted forever."

Peggy saw Steve was doubting, probably scared to let himself hope that it was possible.

"You are always saving other people, maybe this one time, it will be rewarded." She said.

With that Steve stood and went to the closet. He took out his quantum device, and by placing it on his wrist, his red and white suit instantly covered his clothes. He turned around to look at Peggy. She was smiling sadly at him. He got closer and smiled back.

"You had a wonderful life." He said, he'd seen pictures of her family in the hospital, and he'd seen how happy she was with her husband Daniel. "You never needed me for that. But I'm glad I still could be a little part of it."

Peggy looked at him amazed, her eyes shining when she was told about her future. They hugged.

"Goodbye, Steve."

And with one last smile, Steve held the stone firmly and time-jumped once more to Vormir 2014.


End file.
